Bibles this evening, we're turning to John chapter 8. John's Gospel into the 8th chapter. John chapter 8, beginning at the verse 1, and reading through to the end of the verse 14. In John chapter 8 verse 1, Jesus went on to the Mount of Olives. And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him. And he sat down and taught them. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery in the very act Now Moses in the law commanded us that such should be stoned. But what sayest thou? This they said, tempting him that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stood down and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast the stone at her. And again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last. And Jesus was left alone and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had lifted up himself and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, Where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee. Go, and sin no more. Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world. He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself, thy record is not true. Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true. For I know whence I came, and whither I go, but ye cannot tell whence I come. Well, in the reading there we know that the Lord's blessed will follow it to our hearts for His name's sake. It is the verse 12 where we're taking a line out of it as our text. Jesus spake again. Then spake Jesus again unto them saying, I am the light of the world. He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. It is the sentence or the phrase, I am the light of the world. That is our text for tonight, and I trust that God will give us grace and help to minister forth His precious Word. Let's turn again to the Lord for prayers. We pray God's blessing upon the truth proclaimed. Our Father and our God, in our weakness we bow in Thy presence. We need Thee. We need Thee afresh. Dear Lord, we pray that You will come just now, that You will settle us, that You will stand beside us, and that You will speak through us. We take Thy promised Holy Spirit to fill us to the uttermost, and we pray as He. We know that Thou wilt undertake for us. Give help now from the sanctuary. In Jesus' name we pray and for His sake. Amen. Light is so common that we often take it for granted. Yet could you possibly conceive of life without light? In the beginning of time, God said, let there be light. And there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good. And God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light day and the darkness he called night. And the evening and the morning was the first day. How quickly the world would change if suddenly there was no light. No light. Consider the ramifications but for a moment. You and I would no longer see Because light coming to our eyes, to the pupil of our eyes, makes seeing possible. You and I can no longer eat, because green plants use light from the sun to grow and to make food. And all the food that we eat comes from plants such as vegetables or from the animals which thrive in the vegetation, namely the grass. Without light, you and I couldn't breathe. Because as the plants grow and the trees grow, they give off oxygen. And oxygen is a necessary part of the air that we breathe. Ultimately, without light, you and I couldn't exist. Because the light coming from the sun heats the earth. And without the sun's light, crops wouldn't ripen, and the earth would become so cold that nothing could possibly survive or live. Experience reveals that very, very little grows. In a cave, walk into a cave, any cave, deep into the recess of a cave, in the darkness, you'll not see any vegetation. That proves the point that we're making. So what is light? Light is a form of energy. More particularly, light derives from a source which is self-existent, which is self-sufficient. Now the Gospel of John introduces us to the true light. Turn back to John chapter 1. And here in John chapter 1 we have this great teaching, this great truth. Notice verse 7, we'll just break in there. The same came for a witness, speaking of John, to bear witness of the light, that all men through him might believe, through the light, might believe in the light. He was not that light, that is John. but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the ministry of John. Notice verse 9. That was the true light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. John is referring to the person and to the work of Jesus Christ. That is plain in verse 4, but just to give you the context, read verse 3. All things were made by him. And without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. That's speaking of Christ. That same truth is taught in our text, in John chapter 8 and verse 12. Then speaks Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world. I am the light of the world. Turn over a page to John chapter 9. Notice verse 5. As long as I am in the world, Jesus said, I am the light of the world. The very same sentence, the very same statement, the very same proclamation. I am the light of the world. Therefore, Jesus Christ is declaring himself to be the light of the world. And thus we have our topic in the Gospel for tonight. Jesus Christ, the light. Men are dwellers of darkness. Sin captivates the heart of each and every one of us. We were born in sin and shape and iniquity, in darkness. Yet God wants to bring us to the light. Jesus is plainly saying, I am the light. We want to take that as our text for tonight. Noticing three things. Firstly, the nature of this light. What is the appearance that this light comes? Well, it comes to us in two ways. Firstly, it comes as a veiled light. The one of whom we read in John chapter 1. We study there, we've looked upon John chapter 1. The light. That was the true light, as verse 9 says, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. But more at verse 10 and verse 11. He was in the world. This is a person. He was in the world and the world was made by him. And the world knew him not. A veiled light, as though there were scales in the eyes, as though a curtain were drawn, and souls were unable to see the true nature of Jesus Christ. He was in the world, the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. Look at verse 11. He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. They received Him not because they knew Him not. They knew Him not because He wasn't revealed. He didn't reveal Himself to them. The same could be said of the two that walked the Emmaus road. Just back a page in Luke's Gospel, Luke chapter 24, verse 16, it talks about the two that walked the Emmaus road. Plainly in verse 16 we're told, but their eyes were holding that they should not know Him. A veiled light. You know, all power dwelt inherently within Christ. As He walked the scene of time, He could say, all power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. He was the Creator of all things. John 1 and verse 3 tells us that. Moreover, I could turn you to Colossians 1 and verse 16 and 17 which would qualify that point. He is the Creator of all. Let me tell you as well that He of whom we speak of here as the Light of the world is not only the Creator of all, but He's the Sustainer of all. Hebrews 1 and the verses 2 and 3, let me read them to you. Hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, Whom He hath appointed Heir of all things, by Whom also He made the worlds, Who, being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the Word of His power, where he had by himself purged her sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high. There were told that Jesus Christ was the brightness of His glory. Of whose glory? The glory of the Father. Jesus Christ is light. Jesus Christ was both God and man in two distinct natures and yet one person forever. Now that simply means that Jesus Christ was as truly God as He was bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. That is the mystery of godliness. How can we exemplify that? How can we teach that very simply? Well, we can do it this way because God has given us an example in Scripture. Do you remember Gideon in the Old Testament? Do you remember the earthen picture with which he won a tremendous victory? He went with 300 men, chosen men. What had they in their hands? They had lanterns which were earthen pictures, pictures of clay. But inside the picture there was a candle. And the victory was won when Gideon shouted and they broke the pictures and the light did shine. And the enemy saw the candles round about them in the night and they were petrified and they fled. My friend, when we think of Jesus Christ and His divinity and His deity, He had an earthen pitcher of clay just like you and I have. He was bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. But inside, there was a light. The effulgence of the beauty and the glory, the excellence of God's splendor. That's who Jesus Christ is. God's Son, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father. Jesus Christ, as He walked this earth, He had a human body like you and I have, but enshrined and enfolded within was the divine nature. But the nature of this light was a veiled light. But also there came a time when that veil of light was unveiled. The psalmist says in Psalm 36, verse 9, In thy light shall we see light. And that, I believe, is prophetical of Jesus Christ. In thy light shall we see light. Only when this light is revealed can the whole world that languishes in darkness behold the light of life. There came the time when the light of the Word would reveal Himself to heathen darkness, when He would show Himself to the world. And God did permit the light of Christ to break forth from his earthen picture when you think of Matthew chapter 17 and verse 2. Matthew chapter 17 tells us of the Mount of Transfiguration. When Jesus Christ shone in all his resplendent glory, when great fear and alarm fell upon the three chosen disciples who came. They were petrified in the presence of such brilliance of light. My friend, that was the drawing back of the veil. When Jesus Christ revealed His true identity. who He was, who He is, God's Son, the Second Person of the Glorious Trinity, the Redeemer of God's elect. He revealed Himself there. You can think of the two that walked the Emmaus road that we already mentioned. Later on, this head, when the veil was drawn, This did not our heart burn within us while He walked with us and talked with us by the way He revealed Himself to them. It's true identity. Do you think as well of that account of Acts chapter 9 of Saul of Tarsus as he walked the Damascus road? The Bible tells us that suddenly There shined round about him a light from heaven. And Saul of Tarsus knew this was God. Jesus Christ was revealing Himself to mankind. And I want to tell you He's revealing Himself today to men and to women. He's revealing Himself today to your heart and to my heart through His Word. Because God's Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. His light shines upon the road that leads us to the Lamb. And certainly this is so in John chapter 8. When you think of the context that we read of the first 11 verses of John chapter 8, here was I. a woman, she's been brought to the Saviour by the Scribes and Pharisees, a woman that is taken in adultery in the very act. And the true light of God shines in this place. His very presence is like a light. Because He speaks to them. Having stooped down on the ground and He says, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And all men left. Why? Because God took the light and He began to shine it upon their hearts. And we are told in verse 9 of John chapter 8, and they which heard it being convicted by their own conscience. God was taking the light, the torchlight of truth, His very presence, and He was shining into every person who was there gathered, into the dark recesses of their hearts, He that is among you without sin, let him cast the first stone." And as they all began to look at themselves in the light of truth, they had to acknowledge that they were sinners in the sight of God. The nature of this light. Then secondly, the functions of this light. Light is contrary to darkness. And that is certainly in view, if you think of Genesis 1 and verse 4, that God divided the light from the darkness. You see, light penetrates. It pierces through the darkness. You go into a dark room and you flick a light switch, suddenly the darkness recedes. and the brightness envelops. Or if you consider it in another way, darkness, it recedes with the dawning of a new day. I'm not sure if you've ever been awake all night, you're travelling the road, there's darkness and then suddenly, it's as though the dawning of a new day and the light develops. That's the way it is in Israel. Even late evening, it's light, and suddenly it's darkness. That's the way it is in the morning, it's darkness, and then suddenly, all is light. What are some of the functions of light? Well, I do believe that in the first instance, light guides. At one time or other we have all seen the benefit of car lights. We've all used a torch light. Or perhaps we know of the purpose of a bright beam of light that shines forth from a lighthouse. That beam of light, whether it be from a car, from a torch, or from a lighthouse, it has a purpose. And that purpose is to illuminate the darkness, to illuminate potential danger. We all know the function of light. So what is the function of Christ? As the light of the world, it is His chief function to lead men from the depths of the darkness of sin and human depravity from the dungeons of sin, and to lead them to a city, heaven, where there is no night. That is Christ's purpose. To lead you away from the darkness of your life's experience. to bring you into the beauty and the glory and the effulgence of heaven. The psalmist said, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Do you remember the cloud that guided the children of Israel from out of Egyptian bondage a pillar of cloud by day and of fire by night. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. His purpose is to lead you into perfect day, to guide you. That's the function of Christ. Come unto me, all ye that labour and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Not only does it guide, it guards. When out of bondage Israel came, a sea before them lay. They panicked. They were frightened. When they saw the pursuing Egyptians coming, the mighty dust cloud that they kicked up across the wilderness and as they looked to their left hand and to their right, they were encased, captured between two mountain ranges, Beelzebub and Pyhath-Hiroth. The wilderness had shut them in. You can imagine the joy and the glee In the faces of the pursuing Egyptians, as is said, the wilderness has shut them in. A sea before them lay, mountains on either side, the Egyptians boxing them in from behind. As evening approached, the Egyptians were looking forward to the dawning of a new day, when they would go in and they would slay. the children of Israel. But God had other ideas. And while the people were petrified, God took the pillar that guided them by day and he brought it to behind them. It stood between the camp of Israel and the camp of the Egyptians. And the Bible plainly says that unto the one it was light. and to the other it was darkness. God guarded His people. There are many today and they don't come to Christ because they feel that Jesus Christ cannot keep them. They want to come. They know they should come, but they're fearful. I want to tell you in the strength of God's Word, He will never leave you nor forsake you. Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out. Like guides, like guards, can I say also that light heals. Turn back for a moment to Malachi. Malachi chapter 4, the very last chapter of the Old Testament. Malachi chapter 4. This is prophetical scripture. In the opening verse, depicts the closing scene of this world's existence. For behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, ye and all that do wickedly shall be stubble. And the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. That's prophetical. That will come to pass. Notice verse 2. Commences with a but. In other words, there's a difference. But unto you that fear my name shall the son of righteousness arise with healing in his wings. Unto you that fear my name shall the sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings. There is healing in the rays of the sun. We know that generally speaking. On a warm summer sunny day, perhaps after it's been cloudy for most of the day, then suddenly the rays of the sun begin to shine through, to break the gloom, puts a smile on her face. There's healing. People are happy when the sun shines. There's healing in the rays of the sun. With so too, as I think of Jesus Christ who is the personification, the Son of God, the true Son of Righteousness, When He shines His smiling face, all sorrows He doth erase. Jesus Christ heals. He heals broken hearts. I wonder today, has your heart been broken? Maybe it's broken with sin. Jesus Christ heals. He is Jehovah Rufa, the God who healeth thee. He saves sinners from the maladies of sin. This is the ministry of Jesus Christ. Look at the ministry of Jesus Christ. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The evidence is there. It's proven in Scripture. Time and time again. Jesus Christ can heal you. And what's more, He can heal you now. You don't have to go for a prolonged period of treatment. All He has to do is speak the Word. And in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, there is healing. Healing from the malady of sin. Coming finally then to the conditions of this light. We have viewed the nature, the functions. Now we see finally the conditions of this light. In our text of John 8 and verse 12, Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world. He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. Christ must be first. He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, Jesus said, but shall have the light of life. Jesus Christ, therefore, must be the leader. He must be the guide. What are you following today? Who are you following today? Are you following the world? The way of the world leads to destruction. But those that follow Christ, the Bible plainly says, Jesus himself uttered, Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you. A Christian is one who follows. Follow, follow. I would follow Jesus anywhere, everywhere. I would follow on. Who today, what today are you following? Is Jesus first? He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness. but shall have the light of life." There is the promise. You'll not walk in darkness. You'll have the light of life. You're not going to walk in the darkness of ignorance and error. You'll not walk in the darkness of perplexity and confusion, nor in the darkness of joylessness. You know, the chorus group teaches us, and I remember as a young boy in Six-Five Cross, Pre-Presbyterian Church, learning it. It's a grand thing to be a Christian. It's a grand thing to know. It's a grand thing to be a Christian, no matter where you go. Goodbye, sin and sorrow. Farewell, earthly care. It's a hollowing road that leads to glory and my heart lies there. Tell me, does your heart lie there? Are you a Christian? Are you walking in the light and the liberty of the gospel? Is Jesus Christ your light? He's mine. Is He yours? You'll not walk in darkness, but you'll have the light of life. You see, light is essential to life. Without light, all is doomed to failure. But with the light of Christ, we will have life. Life more abundant. A life in heaven with Christ. In a place where there is no sin, no sorrow, no death, no separation, no night. He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. There is one great journey each and every one of us will follow if God tarry his coming. Thus a journey through the valley of the shadow of death. Thus a theist that many, many fear. But the psalmist David, the sweet shepherd of Israel, could say, Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. When I pass through the cold, chilling waters of the Jordan, His smile will be the first to welcome me. Will He welcome you? Are you God's child? Jesus said, I am the light of the world. He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. I trust tonight, if you do not have that life, and you do not have that light, you can find it. speak to us, settle a matter, and be sure your sins are beneath the blood of the Lamb. May God bless His word to our hearts, for His name's sake.